Archive for October, 2013

Animal care director Jamie London will be speaking next Wednesday at the sanctuary along with Marin Humane Society captain Cindy Machado on how to recognize animal abuse in farmed animals. To attend, call 530-575-7984. Date is October 23rd from 3-5 pm at our Grass Valley sanctuary.

What’s inside:

Crown Pumpkin – don’t let the pretty color fool you! This isn’t a front porch pumpkin…it’s more like an eating-pumpkin, to be used in the same way as butternut squash.

Radish Medley – French breakfast radishes are new this week, along with plenty of purples, pinks and watermelons.

Mini Cucumbers – the last of the season

“Golden Acres” Green Cabbage

Russian Banana Fingerling Potatoes

Celery

Mixed Beets

Rainbow Chard

Anaheim and Bell Peppers

Cortland Onions

Cilantro

What’s Happening on the Farm

This is our last farm season and our last CSA harvest. Thank you so much for your support!

Special thank you’s to:

Each and every CSA member, our biggest farm supporters. Assistant farm manager, Andy Gustafson, for eight months of dedication and great ideas. Rebecca Wolf, farm intern for five months, always cheerful and energetic no matter how tough the task. Kim Waits, farm intern, for jumping in with enthusiasm for our final two months. Tom Maher, second season volunteer and potato digger extraordinaire. Greg Litus, my husband, whose big, gentle hands can tirelessly fix anything, grow anything, build anything and carry anything. Gayle Evans, for creating a beautiful flower garden for our beneficial insects and sanctuary visitors. Michael Johnson, our dear friend, volunteer and farm donor. Mary Rodgers, for support and promotion at the Sacramento Vegetarian Society. VegFund, for supporting us through their Merit Award for three seasons. And Kim Sturla, Animal Place’s director, for making this dream possible at the beautiful sanctuary.

Pour non-dairy milk and apple cider vinegar in a a bowl and mix together.

In a blender or grinder pour in flax seeds and grind (about 5- 10 seconds) until 3/4 of the seeds broken up. Do not grind into a powder! Pour ground flax onto a dinner plate.

Take slice of tomato and dip in milk mixture, then in flour mixture, then again in milk mixture (lightly so not to wash off the flour mixture), then in the flax grounds. Place on oiled baking pan. Repeat with each tomato slice. Once all the tomatoes are on baking sheet lightly drizzle olive oil on the tomatoes. Place in oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Flip tomatoes half way through cooking time.

Spoon all the celery mixture into the food processor or blender (or use an immersion blender if you have one). Add the cayenne pepper, silken tofu and puree away until nice and smooth. Add a bit more water if it seems too thick.

Serve it with some raw diced celery and celery leaves sprinkled on top!

2. Peel the squash. Thinly slice off the bottom and top and then slice through the middle lengthwise to make two halves. Remove seeds & guts with a grapefruit spoon or ice cream scoop. Chop two halves into 1-inch chunks and place into casserole dish.

3. Add minced garlic, parsley, oil, and salt into casserole dish and stir until well combined with the squash. Do not add the kale yet.

4. Cover casserole dish with a lid (or tin foil with a few holes poked) and bake at 400F for about 45 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, process the parmesan ingredients together until chunky (or just chop by hand and mix in a bowl). Make sure to leave lots of nut pieces for texture. I used a mini processor and it worked great with minimal clean up.

6. After about 45 mins (or when squash is just fork tender), remove from the oven and reduce heat to 350F. Stir in the chopped kale and sprinkle the parmesan all over the squash. Bake for another 5-8 minutes, until the nuts are lightly toasted. Watch closely so you don’t burn them. Remove & serve!

We’re a hopin’ and a prayin’ that some of fall crops will mature in time for your last boxes. We’ve covered the broccoli and cabbage with an agricultural fabric to protect them from the harlequin bugs and aphids, whose populations were very difficult to control for this family of crops this spring. Yesterday, our trusty volunteer Tom uncovered them to apply our homebrewed microbial tea in an effort to encourage their growth and overall health. You’ll know how this all works out in late October, when you open up your last box. We hope that you see broccoli and cabbage!

Ahead of time, you can prepare your Cauliflower Queso, Tofu Sour Cream and the guacamole and pico de gallo (if you’re not using store-bought). I bought the pico de gallo and for the guacamole, I just mashed an avocado with some lime juice, cilantro, and a tablespoon of the pico de gallo.

Preheat the oven to 450. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread out your potato chunks and lightly spray with olive oil (or drizzle about 1 teaspoon of oil over them). Add spices and salt and pepper to taste. Toss to fully coat each piece. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes, flipping once.

If you made your queso ahead of time, reheat about half of the recipe in a small pot over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. If you just made it and it’s still warm, then you can skip this step.

While your potatoes are in the oven, cook your beans. In a large pan, combine the vegetable broth, Bragg Liquid Aminos, and garlic. Heat the pan over medium heat and add your black beans. Cook the beans in the liquid until the liquid begins to simmer, about two minutes, before adding the corn, the bell pepper, the chilies, the liquid smoke, and the spices. Turn the heat to low and cook the beans, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has cooked away and the beans are fully cooked (hot, but not mushy). Squeeze in the lime juice, stir in the cilantro and add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.

To assemble the nachos, place all of the potatoes on one large plate, or split them up into 3-4 individual servings. Top the potatoes with as much cauliflower queso as you would like. Pour about 1 1/2 cups of the black bean mixture over the cheese. Add the sour cream, pico de gallo, and guacamole on top of the beans. Top with sliced black olives, green onions, and chilies. Serve immediately. Enjoy!